N&W' s former L&D line, Lynchburg to Durham, NC, south end news!!

[nw-mailing-list at nwhs.org]

Listers:

>From the NSFans list comes this from list member Paul Highland. This is the

ROW of the former Lynchburg & Durham (L&D) between these two cities. The
line is still used today between Lynchburg and somewhere around the NC line
to serve power plants. South of that is in rough condition to at least south
of Roxboro, NC, or the rail has been taken up. This is good news for us on
the northern end. It could eventually mean more traffic should NS decide to
replace the track. An interesting article none-the-less. It came close to
being sold!
Charlie Long
Lynchburg


Durham (NC) Herald-Sun:

http://www.herald-sun.com/durham/4-624118.html

Norfolk Southern says abandoned corridor may be used again

By GINNY SKALSKI : The Herald-Sun
<mailto:gskalski at heraldsun.com>
Jul 6, 2005 : 7:15 pm ET

DURHAM NC -- Norfolk Southern says it's hanging on to 21 miles of abandoned
rail corridor between
downtown Durham and Person County because it believes there's a chance
trains once again could
rumble through the area.

The corporation earlier had talked with state and local governments about
selling the corridor, but
took it off the market late last month.

Durham city and county officials had hoped to turn the land into a paved
trail for bicyclists and
pedestrians.

"Recent business developments, such as the current rail renaissance with
more freight traffic and
potentially more commuter operations, have resulted in a more conservative
retention of our assets
which we believe may be of value to the corporation in the future," Norfolk
Southern said Wednesday
in a statement issued to The Herald-Sun.

The paper first reported Wednesday morning that the railroad company had
taken the corridor off the
market.

The state Department of Transportation has agreed to pay half the purchase
price for the corridor,
then would lease the land to Durham for interim trail use.

The state ultimately hoped a light rail system could run along the corridor
from downtown Durham to
the 5,300-acre Treyburn community in northern Durham.

NCDOT officials still are talking with Norfolk Southern about buying a
3.5-mile spur off the main
line known as the Duke Beltline. It runs through a northern portion of
downtown.

But Norfolk Southern appears to be holding off on the sale of the corridor,
which ends at Timberlake
in Person County, for a better deal.

The state was prepared to offer $3 million for the stretch, a figure that
Durham city and county
leaders hoped to match -- bringing the total price tag to $6 million.

"[Norfolk Southern] is continually reviewing and evaluating our branch line
network based on changes
in the marketplace. Several years ago we were more aggressive in disposing
of assets in order to
raise cash," the railroad company's statement said.

Bill Bussey, president of the Triangle Rails to Trails Conservancy, has said
he hopes the railroad
will reconsider.

"It would basically give us 40-plus miles of trail from Timberlake down to
Jordan Lake," Bussey
said. "It would go right through Durham. It would make a world-class
greenway trail."
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